Man cooked ex-girlfriend's dog and fed it to her, police say

REDDING, Calif. (KABC) -- A California man was arrested after police said he killed his ex-girlfriend's dog, cooked it, then fed it to her without her knowing.

Ryan Watenpaugh, 34, was arrested Thursday near his home in Palo Cedro.

A restraining order filed against Watenpaugh reveals startling and shocking details in a case police said is fueled by domestic violence.

Police said back in early August, the victim's dog, a Pomeranian named "Bear," went missing after she and Watenpaugh got in an argument. Police said it was one of many in the couple's turbulent and violent relationship.

Watenpaugh's ex-girlfriend told police he had repeatedly hit her while they were dating.

However, the first week of September, there was a brief reconciliation between the two and Watenpaugh cooked the victim a meal, one that included meat.

Then on Sept. 7, Watenpaugh allegedly sent a series of text messages to the woman, reading in part, "How's your dog taste? I thought it was better with BBQ and those Hawaiian buns ... the smile on my face when you read this ... priceless."

The menacing texts continued until Tuesday when Watenpaugh allegedly left Bear's severed paws on the victim's doorstep, along with a note.

"Burn in hell whore, I hate you so much it hurts. Stay away from me. I want nothing to do with you. (Expletive) off," the note, signed with a smiley face, read.

"You know this is extremely strange," said Redding Police Sgt. Todd Cogle. "Unusual, something we had never seen before."

"It was just a pressure cooker or a loaded spring ready to snap, this relationship was very tumultuous and toxic," Cogle continued.

Police served a search warrant at Watenpaugh's home and found a Romanian variant AK-47 assault rifle and multiple high capacity magazines.

Watenpaugh was booked into the Shasta County Jail on charges of domestic violence, false imprisonment, stalking and animal cruelty. Police said additional charges will be sought regarding the weapons violations. Watenpaugh was being held on $250,000 bail.